Justice
"Justice", at its base, means "to be just, fair". More commonly however, the meaning of justice is to punish a criminal that has done something wrong in a suitable manner that fits their crime. Justice, in this sense, can be served by a criminal in many ways from receiving a fine, serving time in prison or execution, to name a few. The classic view of how a criminal should 'serve justice' is thought of as "an eye for an eye", which means if they have done something wrong, they deserve a punishment as great as the crime they committed. If a killer murders someone, then according to this term, it means they themselves should face death as a suitable form of justice. One Piece Justice Justice has been used many many times in the series; the CP9 use this term against Iceburg, the Marines use this term to catch pirates and criminals. Justice is used in an archetypal pattern often at times (e.g. someone would talk about doing things "In the name of justice"One Piece manga - Chapter 96, Justice mentioned. or "ridding the world from evil"). A common theme is that corrupt members of Marines and CP9 often use Justice as justification for their actions, putting every inhumane thing they've done as a necessary evil to preserve peace to the world, this has often led people (most of them pirates) to react with disgust at their behaviour. Forms of Justice Absolute Justice Absolute Justice (絶対的正義, Zettai-Teki Seigi) is the belief that many marines hold. What is Absolute Justice? Marines following the rule of Absolute Justice will be noted to display some or all of the following views: # Anyone connected to criminals, no matter who they are, can be arrested even if they have not done anything. Koby - Episode 1 - "They'd arrest me before I could join." Koby - Episode 3 - Luffy beats Koby. Koby - Episodes 68 and 69 - Koby is told by Helmeppo then later Garp to stop mentioning his friendship with Luffy. Even if the criminal is family, they must be captured or killed. Garp is reordered back to Water 7 after letting out Luffy was his grandson. # All individuals noted to have done illegal activities or criminal acts will be reported to Marine HQ and issued bounties, based the known information on their threat level. Regardless of the circumstances. Episode 43 - Nezumi reports Luffy to the Marine HQ despite defeating Arlong and Saving Nami's hometown, purely on the basis of injury to his pride. Episode 127 - Smoker and Tashigi get rewarded for the efforts of the Straw Hats pirates against Crocodile and Baroque Works. Robin is issued with a 79 million bounty, even though she is just a mere child and has survived a great loss, because she can read Poneglyphs. # Raising the Jolly Roger, mentioning, or being associated with pirates can be taken as a criminal offense. Episode 95 Smoker arrest some pirates who mentioned being pirates in front of him. Episode 129, the Straw Hats give a silent good bye to Vivi to save her from being thought to be linked to them. # Any country caught harboring pirates can have further actions taken against them. episode 128 - The Marines demand Arabasta give up any criminals they have. # Destroying an island to eliminate a problem is an option. One Piece manga and anime - Enies Lobby arc. # Innocent lives can be taken to prevent the possibility of a criminal escaping. One Piece manga - Chapter 397, a ship of Ohara is destroyed on the possibility of a scholar may be on board. However, the truth is that only innocent people and not scholars were on board. # Any Marine who hesitates to take action against a criminal as ordered can face punishment. One Piece manga - Chapter 422, a Marine is shot for question orders. #Slavery is ignored as it is seen as an effective means to handle criminals. One Piece manga - Chapter 497, Two World Nobles are seen killing their slave, a pirate captain. Moral Justice Moral Justice: Much like "human justice". What is Moral Justice? Marines following the rule of Moral Justice will be noted to display many or all of the following views: # Giving someone a warning without charges being pressed against them. Episode 95 Tashigi lets a Merchant off lightly for an over priced Katana he was selling. # Refusing to receive promotions for criminals who have stopped other criminals. Episode 127 - Smoker tells the World Government to "eat shit" for being awarded promotions for the efforts of the Straw Hats pirates in Arabasta. # Refusing to capture criminals, sparing criminals, or ordering other Marines not to arrest criminals. episode 127 - Tashigi orders her men not to capture the Straw Hats because their efforts in Arabasta. episode 109 - Smoker refuses to capture Luffy because he saved his life at Rainbase. Jaguar D. Saul allows Olvia to escape. Garp refuses to capture Luffy. #Allowing a criminal to join the Marines so long as they forget their past. Jango's mini-series. Jango joins the Marines. # Refusing to obey orders on moral grounds. Jaguar D. Saul refuses his orders because he thinks attacking civilians and the Ohara historians is wrong. # Questions the orders of a superior officer. One Piece manga - Chapter 393, a Marine is shot for question orders. # Dismissing Marines or other member of the law who are too cruel in their ways. The Opinion of the word "Justice" While currently, only two types of justice are shown in the series Marines may choose to display signs of either form of justice based on their own interpretations or opinions. Some example of different opinion-based ideas on justice include Aokiji who declared he served a "Lazy Justice", Rob Lucci who claimed to serve a "Dark Justice" and Smoker who told Tashigi to create her own "personal justice". In the CP9 Mini series, Rob Lucci was seen to have done an "Excessive Justice" to the Candy Pirates. The extreme nature of his attack against them horrified the citizens that witnessed his strike. One Piece manga - Chapter 513, Rob Lucci attacks the Candy Pirates captain with great force. The Doctrine of "Absolute Justice" The Marines follow a strict motto of "Absolute Justice" (絶対正義 Zettai Seigi), when it comes to prosecuting those who violate the government's laws. It is a central tenet of Marine doctrine, to the point where the word "Justice" (正義 Seigi) is emblazoned on the uniform coats of all commissioned officers. Pirates have been especially singled out by the Marines as a major threat to order. They are considered criminals regardless of whether they have committed any crimes other than raising the Jolly Roger. Civilians, too, are targeted by the prohibition against piracy: persons known to have associated with pirates are barred from entering the Marines (there are notable exceptions), and providing aid or comfort to pirates is a serious crime, especially if they are well-known bounty heads. It's not known why the World Government supports absolute justice as much as it does nor where the ideals centered around it originate from, though it does ensure that the majority of the world is held under the World Governments thumb effectively giving them absolute control of the world. "Absolute Justice" vs. "Moral Justice" One of the ongoing themes of One Piece is the misapplication of the principle of "justice" by the Marines. While the Marines wish to maintain law and order by apprehending criminals, the techniques that it (or at least some of its members) use can often be no better than the pirates they seek to wipe out, trampling the rights or needs of civilians in order to pursue its own ends. They are also shown to willingly sacrifice the lives of other Marines in attempts to pursue absolute justice, often sacrificing large numbers for the sake of one or two criminals. Thus, proving that, judging from their morally-questionable actions, the Marines are just as bad as, if not worse than, the enemies they fight. References Site Navigation Category:Terms Category:Marines